The present invention relates to a carrying case or chest, and more particularly to a blow-molded double-walled carrying case or chest providing multiple layers of storage space.
The blow molding of hinged, double wall carrying cases has been a proven commercial process since as early as 1964. Typically, such cases are integrally compartmented in their interiors to retain and position assortments of contents. Examples of such contents are power tools with accessories or multi-component instrument kits.
Requirements sometimes arise for the packaging in individual compartments of a relatively large number of separate objects of relatively small size or shallow depth, such as assortments of socket wrenches or taps and dies. If these assortments were organized in a single layer in the carrying case, the resultant package would be large and shallow. Such a case is relatively difficult to mold and awkward to carry and. store. To overcome these deficiencies, it is well known to design cases with a removable interior tray, the tray positioned over the compartments in the base of the case. Such a construction yields two layers of usable package surface. For a given contents assortment, this design substantially reduces the exterior area of the case, albeit with an increase in depth.
In certain circumstances a similar result can be achieved by molding individual compartments in the inside lid of the case as well as in the inside base. It is necessary that contents stored in these lid compartments be separated from those in the base. It is also necessary that they be retained in what is essentially an xe2x80x9cupside downxe2x80x9d position when the closed case rests on its bottom surface, or during the act of opening the hinged lid of the case. Sometimes this retention can be accomplished by snap fitting the lid contents in place. Usually, however, it is more desirable to install a separate, flat hinged panel in the inside lid, with a snap fit or other such closure opposite the hinges to hold the panel in a closed position, parallel to the lid parting line, as the case is opened or closed.
Both of the designs described above yield a package with two layers. However, there are situations in which more than two layers are desirable, either to enhance carrying or storage capabilities, or to satisfy marketing requirements for a distinctive package. Such multi-layer products usually consist of a series of drawers slidably mounted in a frame, that is to say, a storage chest. Such products are well known in plastic, wood or metal formats and they have been produced in double wall blow molded constructions. One such product is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,662,515 and another was made commercially available as early as 1998 by Sears Roebuck and Co.
The chest of the ""515 patent is formed by molding flat side and base members and then folding them into a frame which can receive sliding drawers. A box-like structure is attached to the top of the folded frame, and then a hinged lid is affixed to the top of the boxlike portion. This combination of a box with a hinged lid on top of a chest of sliding drawers permits packaging of contents of various depths and sizes in the box, and smaller, flatter contents in the drawers. However, the arrangement has at least three major deficiencies.
First, the assembly process is cumbersome and hence expensive. Second, the center carrying handle of the completed chest is mounted in the lid rather than in the frame. As a result, latches as well as hinges are required to secure the lid, and carrying stresses are imposed on the latches and hinges. This is undesirable because stresses on such components may lead to failure thereof under the weight of the chest""s contents. Third, to mold the complete chest, both flat slabs (the frame) and the deeper box components are required. From a cost standpoint, it is advantageous to mold the complete chest frame as a single molding containing multiple cavities. However, combining deep and shallow parts in such a xe2x80x9cfamilyxe2x80x9d mold introduces severe inefficiencies of production.
The Sears chests are produced as a series of flat panels which are then folded and snap fitted into a rigid frame. Molding becomes simpler because all components are flat and shallow. Assembly is also simplified by using snap fit attachment instead of a series of rivets or other separate fasteners. In addition, the center carrying handle of each Sears chest is mounted in the frame itself, thereby eliminating the need for latches or hinges, both of which mechanisms are subject to undesirable stress in a top-handle container.
However, in overcoming the deficiencies of the ""515 chest, the Sears design introduces problems of its own. Using a full panel top means that all storage space in the chest will be in drawers and none in a boxlike structure. Moreover, top access, which is often desirable, is lost, along with a convenient means for accommodating contents of varying depths in a single compartment.
What is desired, therefore, is a blow molded double wall chest which is easy and inexpensive to produce relative to known designs, which includes a handle mounted in the frame rather than in a hinged lid, which includes molded components which are uniformly flat and shallow, which includes a portion thereof adapted to receive larger objects, and which provides for at least partial top access to objects stored therein.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a blow molded double wall chest which is easy and inexpensive to produce relative to known designs.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a blow molded double wall chest having the above characteristics and which includes a handle mounted in the frame rather than in a hinged lid.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a blow molded double wall chest having the above characteristics and which includes molded components which are uniformly flat and shallow.
Still another object of the present invention is to provide a blow molded double wall chest having the above characteristics and which includes a portion thereof adapted to receive larger objects.
Yet a further object of the present invention is to provide a blow molded double wall chest having the above characteristics and which provides for at least partial top access to objects stored therein.
These and other objects of the present invention are achieved by provision of a blow molded carrying chest which includes a frame and a lid. The frame includes a base frame member, a left end frame member and a right end frame member attached to the base frame member. A top frame member is rigidly attached to the left end frame member and the right end frame member, and defines only a portion of a top surface of the chest. A lid is hingedly connected to the frame, and defines a remainder of the top surface of the chest not defined by the top frame member. The lid is pivotable from a closed position to an open position to provide access to an interior of the chest.
Preferably, the base frame member, the left end frame member and the right end frame member are integrally molded as a single unit, and integrally molded hinges are provided between the base frame member and the left end frame member and between the base frame member and the right end frame member such that the left end frame member and the right end frame member are pivoted with respect to the base frame member about the integrally molded hinges such that the left end frame member and the right end frame member are substantially perpendicular to the base frame member. Also preferably, the top frame member includes, at each of two opposite ends thereof, a barbed portion, and the left end frame member and the right end frame member include therein openings having stepped relief portions. The openings and stepped relief portions are sized and shaped to receive the barbed portions of the top frame member in a fixed snap fitted relationship.
Preferably, the frame defines a drawer cavity and the chest includes a plurality of drawers slidably mounted within the drawer cavity such that each of the drawers is slidable between a retracted position wherein the drawer is located within the drawer cavity and an extended position wherein at least a portion of the drawer is protruding from the drawer cavity to provide access to contents of the drawer. Most preferably, the lid includes molded ribs on an inside surface thereof sized, shaped and positioned to retain contents of varying heights in position in a top of the plurality of drawers.
The lid, in addition to defining a remainder of the top surface of the chest not defined by the top frame member, is preferably curved downward toward the base frame member to also define at least a portion of a front surface of the chest and an edge defined by the top surface of the chest and the front surface of the chest. Preferably, a handle is attached to the top frame member to facilitate carrying of the chest.
Preferably, the base frame member defines a rectangular surface having portions thereof removed in order to reduce weight and bulk of the chest. Most preferably, the base frame member is hollowed out into a substantially C-shaped configuration in order to reduce weight and bulk of the chest with little sacrifice to rigidity.
The invention and its particular features and advantages will become more apparent from the following detailed description considered with reference to the accompanying drawings.